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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26668837">till your love brought on the spring</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomTales/pseuds/FandomTales'>FandomTales</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Life with Derek</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>5+1 Things, F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:20:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,819</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26668837</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomTales/pseuds/FandomTales</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>5 times derek and casey share a moment before they're together, and 1 time after.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Casey McDonald &amp; Derek Venturi, Casey McDonald/Derek Venturi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>76</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>till your love brought on the spring</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>title from tyler childers song "lady may".</p>
<p>cw for slight blood and throwing up.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>1. knowing their food and drink order</p>
<p>	Casey was still drifting in and out of sleep, tossing around in her bedsheets, when she heard Derek’s voice booming downstairs. “I’m home! Get your breakfast or I’m eating it!” </p>
<p>	She heard three sets of footsteps pass her door and run down the steps. Casey sat bolt upright. Her clock read 8:57. Saturday mornings had a 9:00 wakeup, always. It was part of the Casey routine; everyone knew it. Which unfortunately meant Derek had skipped her breakfast order on purpose. That Jerk. Casey threw back her covers and rushed down the steps.</p>
<p>	“Derek!” she cried, skidding to a stop in front of the table. Nora and George were talking quietly to each other over bagels, Lizzie and Edwin seemed to be engaged in some sort of waffle eating competition, and Marty was trying to feed her stuffed cat a bite of pancake. No one even looked up from their food to see what Casey’s early morning outburst was about. Everyone had learned to ignore them. Casey walked into the kitchen and jabbed a finger at Derek’s chest. “Why didn’t you wake me up? I wanted breakfast too.”</p>
<p>	Derek rolled his eyes and turned away from her. A fresh wave of anger was hitting her all over again at his dismissal. Before she could get another word out though, he spun back around, coffee in his left hand, tin foil wrapped sandwich in his right. “I did get you breakfast.” </p>
<p>	Casey was stunned, temporarily. “But you didn’t ask what I wanted.”</p>
<p>	“Lowfat, decaf, medium mocha with two pumps sugar free caramel sauce.” He handed her the drink. “Bagel breakfast sandwich, no tomatoes, extra lettuce, sliced four ways.” He handed her the sandwich. She sheepishly accepted it.</p>
<p>	He remembered. He remembered her stupid, complicated, obnoxious order. Even Max had messed that up. Her throat felt tight. “Thanks.”</p>
<p>	He shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded, walking slowly to the table. Casey watched him sit down and take a bite of his french toast. She looked down at the counter. Thrown haphazardly beside the toaster was a list. Everyone’s order was written down but hers. Even Edwin’s plain order of “waffles”. She felt special for a second.</p>
<p>	Then a wheel of excuses spun in her head and she settled on the explanation that it was Derek’s way of setting up a prank. He was definitely planning something. He had probably poisoned this drink, or gotten full caf so she would be wired all day.</p>
<p>	She sat down across from him and narrowed her eyes. </p>
<p>	“What?” he said with a mouthful of half chewed toast. Casey pretended to gag.</p>
<p>	“Nothing. Don’t talk with your mouth full.”<br/>
He shrugged and turned to talk with Edwin. Casey looked back down at her breakfast.</p>
<p>	(The food had not been poisoned. It was good. Casey still didn’t trust it.)</p>
<p>2. zipping up a dress</p>
<p>	Derek almost tripped in the hallway (again) while trying to multitask texting and walking. Marti had gotten into the nasty habit of dropping her toys on the way from the first floor to the second, and while Derek himself was not fond of picking things up, he hoped that wouldn’t be a trait she learned from him. It was proving to be annoying. Especially at that moment, as Casey called out, </p>
<p>	“Derek!” in her usual long suffering way.</p>
<p>	He pocketed his phone and poked his head into her room. “What?”</p>
<p>	She had her arms twisted around her body. With a sheepish smile she said, “help me zip this up?”</p>
<p>	Derek froze. This was not something he’d usually be drafted for. Really, it was something she'd ask just about every family member to do before him. She must have read the confusion on his face as apprehension.</p>
<p>	“I can ask someone else if you won’t Derek, but I’m gonna be late to my date if you don’t decide.”</p>
<p>	Right, Max. She’s still with that jerk. For a little bit, Derek had actually liked the guy, right before he skipped Casey’s dance recital and made her cry. Not that Derek would ever admit that out loud. Casey has just assumed the sports rivalry picked back up with the start of the fall season.</p>
<p>	He almost wanted to stand in her doorway for a few more minutes, indecisive and make her late for her date.</p>
<p>	But he couldn’t do that.</p>
<p>	Derek walked into the room and motioned for Casey to turn back around. She grinned and positioned herself to stand facing the mirror. He could, from an outsider’s perspective, admit she looked pretty. She had done more makeup than she usually did, some sort of shimmer on her eyelids and red lipstick. Derek didn’t know how he felt. Her curled hair tumbled over her back and as he stepped up behind her, he realized he’d have to move it.</p>
<p>	He held his breath as he ran his nails over her shoulder, sweeping up the hair and gathering it in his hand carefully. She shivered when it fell over her shoulder.</p>
<p>	“Sorry,” she whispered. “Ticklish.”</p>
<p>	Derek’s mouth was dry. “Don’t, uh, don’t worry about it, Spacey.”</p>
<p>	He could see in his peripherals that she was watching him in the mirror, but he didn’t look up to meet her eyes. Instead, he kept them trained on the zipper, not looking at the curve of her waist or the lines of her shoulders. He placed his left hand on her waist, fingers curling slightly, thumb pressed into the small of her back to hold the dress in place, and slowly pulled the zip up. He linked the small clasp at the top of the zipper for her, missing it a few times with his shaky hands, before finally doing it. </p>
<p>	He stepped back and swallowed hard.</p>
<p>	“Done.”</p>
<p>	Casey turned around to look at her back in the mirror. He wondered what she was checking. She seemed satisfied. With a small smile, she turned to him.</p>
<p>	“Thank you,” she said quietly. She grabbed her purse from her bed and hurried out the door.</p>
<p>	Derek sat down at the foot of her bed. “You’re welcome,” he whispered.</p>
<p>3. shoulder nudges and reading their expressions</p>
<p>	Casey figured she was pretty good at reading Derek after living with him for a year. Outwardly, Derek was no different today  than he was any other day. He woke up late for school, hogged the shower, and took a bite out of everyone else’s breakfast. At school he walked the halls like he owned them, called her “Space-Case” when she dropped her notebooks in the doorway to math, and tried to charm his way into copying Emily’s homework. He came home after hockey practice, dropped into “his” recliner, and stole the remote from Edwin. Everyday Derek things.</p>
<p>	But she watched the lines of his mouth, the set of his jaw, the furrow in his brows. He was struggling. She didn’t know with what and he’d never tell her if she asked.</p>
<p>	So, she didn’t ask. She made cookies and pretended they were for everyone, but she made his favorite flavor. No one else ever asked for Toffee Chocolate Chip, so he must know it was for him. She hoped he did. While they stood around the kitchen, eating the cookies, Casey made her way to Derek, leaning back against the counter next to him and taking a bite out of her cookie.</p>
<p>	“Thanks,” he said, holding his up. He took a bite out of it and stared into space. Casey took a deep breath and then bumped her shoulder against his, just a little nudge, something to say she was there for him. He bothered her to no end, but she didn’t want to see him like this. He turned to her. She knew the squint in his eyes. He was looking for something written in her expression. Maybe he thought she was messing with him. She smiled, earnestly. He shook his head and turned away from her, taking another bite from the cookie. </p>
<p>	Maybe she couldn’t read him as well as she thought.</p>
<p>4. staying with them while they’re sick</p>
<p>	“You are… sick,” Derek said, slowly. </p>
<p>	Casey scoffed. “Yeah, Derek, I’m sick. You know, something that happens to people when they go into the germy general public.” She was hunched over the toilet seat, face resting on her arm, arm on the toilet seat. Her eyes slipped shut and Derek thought she looked strangely vulnerable, childlike. He stood in the doorway for a minute, watching her. “Can I help you?” she slurred.</p>
<p>	“Can I help you?” He kind of wanted to run away, but she looked like she needed someone and everyone else was out.</p>
<p>	She murmured something unintelligible.</p>
<p>“Huh?”</p>
<p>“Don’t need anything.” </p>
<p>	He nodded, unsure of what to do.</p>
<p>	“Blanket,” he said, noticing her shivers. “You need a blanket.”</p>
<p>	Duh. Of course she’s freezing. She’s got the flu and she’s camped out on the porcelain bathroom floor in shorts and a tank top. Derek pulls the blanket off her bed, the middle one with the satin lining, and jogs back to the bathroom. His face falls when he sees Casey retching again. </p>
<p>	In a decision he can’t tell is good or bad yet, he steps into the bathroom and drops to his knees behind her, draping the blanket over her shivering shoulders.  She grips it and it seems to help for a moment, before she leans back over the toilet.The hair begins to slip from her ponytail with the violence of her sickness and Derek stands up, pulling the hair back from her face. It reminds him of zipping her dress up a few months ago, of gathering her hair into his hands and making her shiver. That was much more pleasant than this for the both of them.</p>
<p>	He makes the wise choice not to look into the toilet when she’s done being ill and instead flushes it for her.</p>
<p>	She slumps back against the toilet, looking exhausted. Carefully, Derek tucks her hair back behind her ear and stands up, moving to the sink. He fills a paper cup up with water and hands it to her.</p>
<p>	“Thanks,” she says in a hoarse voice, rinsing and spitting into the toilet. She seems okay enough, and Derek can’t tell if she wants him there or not, so he makes to leave. Casey whimpers. He turns around, worried she’s going to cry. Puke he can handle, crying he can not.</p>
<p>	“Woah, woah, Casey what’s wrong?” he asks, tone soft and gentle. He holds his hands up in a placating gesture.</p>
<p>	“Stay,” she whispers. “I don’t feel well and I need you here.”</p>
<p>	By “you” Derek assumes she means anyone, and he is anyone. He steels his nerves for another several rounds of sick Casey. </p>
<p>	“Okay. I’m gonna stay.” Casey nods, slumping back onto the toilet. “Don’t worry about it,” he whispers. He slides down the wall so he’s sitting diagonally from her, giving her space. </p>
<p>	She doesn’t want it.</p>
<p>	Casey sits up and back against the wall. The blanket is still clenched tightly in her fists and he knows she doesn’t feel well. She’s tried to hide sickness before so George and Nora would let her go to school, or dance, or theater; seeing her unabashedly ill is making Derek nervous.<br/>
She leans heavily against him and rests her head on his shoulder. She’s pretty out of it and it might be rude to try to change her positions when she’s already disoriented and sick, so he reaches his arm up and around her shoulders so he can keep her from falling forward. After a few minutes, she becomes a little slacker in his arms, breaths evening out. Derek realizes, belatedly, that she’s fallen asleep. He settles in and rests her a little more against him so he can get them both into a comfortable position.</p>
<p>	He stays with her and lets her sleep until George and Nora get home. He stays while they take their coats off, and put away their leftovers, and ascend the stairs. </p>
<p>But he leaves before Nora can take their picture.</p>
<p>“Oh come on, Derek, I’ll only take one. Just one little photo!”</p>
<p>5. patching up their injuries </p>
<p>	Things had been a little better between Derek and Casey since she’d been sick and he stayed with her through while she was sick.</p>
<p>	A little. She still thought he was an idiot and he still thought she was a control freak. Especially today, when Derek had been playing street hockey with Lizzie and, contrary to whatever delusional thoughts he was entertaining, it was not “exactly” like ice hockey. He had stumbled on a rock in the street and tumbled off his roller skates. Lizzie came running into the house convinced he’d broken both arms. Casey followed her out of the house to where Derek was sitting in the street.</p>
<p>	“Oh my God, Derek!” Casey yelled, running over to him. “Let me see. Right now.”</p>
<p>	Derek scoffed and rolled his eyes. “I’m okay, calm down. Lizzie just saw it from a bad angle.” He held his hands up and Casey cringed. His palms looked like raw meat. Lizzie didn’t do great with blood, so Casey nodded in the direction of the house.</p>
<p>	“Go in, Liz. Derek is fine, just dumb.” He started protesting but she shushed him. “Can you get up?” she asked.</p>
<p>	“Can I get up?” he mocked, face falling from it’s smugness into despair as he realized he couldn’t use his hands to get up, and his feet were still in roller skates. He looked up at Casey.</p>
<p>	“You so owe me,” she said. With careful hands, she unlaced his skates. She could feel his eyes burning a hole into her, but she didn’t dare look up. When she was done, she dropped the skates onto the lawn and came up behind him. Wordlessly, she looped her arms around his waist and helped him stand.</p>
<p>	“Thanks,” he mumbled. He was blushing hard. </p>
<p>	“Don’t mention it,” Casey said, face probably just as red. “Let me help you clean your hands up.”</p>
<p>	She led them back into the house and into the bathroom. “Wash,” she instructed. She gathered supplies from the first aid kit in the kitchen while he washed the blood and gravel from his palms, wincing only a few times. When he was done she guided him down onto the closed toilet seat. Without the expected protest, he sat. She knew he was feeling bad. She washed her hands and quickly got to work.</p>
<p>	“How are you with blood, Derek?”</p>
<p>	He didn’t answer. That didn’t exactly make Casey feel better.</p>
<p>	“Just don’t faint on me, alright?”</p>
<p>	He nodded and kept his eyes on the floor. Casey took his left hand into hers and studied it. It wasn’t too bad once the blood was off. Scraped up, yes, but nothing too deep or long. She took an alcohol pad from the counter and cringed. </p>
<p>	“This might hurt a little.”</p>
<p>	Derek hissed as she wiped his palm from wrist to finger tips several times until she’d disinfected his cuts as well as she could. She repeated the process on the other hand with much of the same effect. She moved on with antibiotic cream. Derek looked up for this. He watched their hands with silent rapture, as she carefully swiped her thumbs across his palm, rubbing the antibiotics in. His shoulders slumped forward.</p>
<p>	“Doing okay?” she asked softly. He nodded.</p>
<p>	“I’m alright.”</p>
<p>	She finished by bandaging the biggest cuts. When she was done with the last cut, she smoothed down the bandaid gently and set his hand back in his lap. The moment felt heavy.</p>
<p>	“Finished.”</p>
<p>	Derek nodded examining his hands. “Thanks, Casey.”</p>
<p>	She nodded. “I’m gonna put the first aid kit back. Don’t stand up until you’re sure you won’t pass out.”</p>
<p>	Derek laughed a little. “I’ll be here.”</p>
<p> +1 moving in and falling asleep together</p>
<p>	“That’s it,” Casey announced, dropping the last box onto the floor. She brushed her hands together like she was scrubbing off a hard day’s worth of dirt and grime. Derek snorted. She grinned and shoved him away. They were silent for a long moment before Casey said, “All of our things… in one apartment.”</p>
<p>	Derek whistled. </p>
<p>	“How do you feel?” Casey asked. She looked suddenly nervous, like Derek was going to pack his things back into the moving truck and scribble his name off the lease. She should know better by now.</p>
<p>	He took her hand in his and squeezed. “I feel like I want to fall asleep on the couch with my favorite Space-Case while we watch a movie.”</p>
<p>	She rolled her eyes, but stood on her tiptoes to kiss him sweetly</p>
<p>	An hour later, Casey was drifting to sleep on Derek’s chest on their couch in their apartment. And Derek was laying there, wanting nothing more than to feel this happy forever.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thanks for reading! kudos and comments make my day &lt;3 constructive criticism always welcome :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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